I was thinking whist pinning ribbon on a polystyrene head yesterday how far away I have come from my tailoring roots. I’m not really sure when the fascination with the faux fur came in, especially as 10 years ago I couldn’t stand the stuff! This was probably because the kind of faux fur I was thinking of was the type you would find as a trim on a really cheap coat or a really nasty (and quite flammable!) teddy bear.
I then discovered the mink quality and Madagascar furs which despite the fact they are defiantly faux fur are incredibly soft, silky, luxurious and just like the real thing. This is helped by the fact the furs consist of many different lengths of fibre imitating how the fur would be naturally often with tipped longer guard hairs just like the real thing.
I often get asked how you can tell the really good faux furs apart from the real stuff- Its simple if you part the fur you should be able to see the backing. If its woven or kitted you have yourselves faux fur and if its skin then its real. Some of the better faux furs are actually more expensive than using cheap real fur from china. This is due to all the work that goes into weaving the fur fibres onto the backing.
Working with the fur has defiantly been amazing fun so far and as I develop my skills working with it I’m learning all the time what you can (and can’t!) do with it. I spend so much time in my studio testing out new ideas as often you don’t know if it’s going to work until you try it. I am currently working on a tweed and faux fur clutch. I was concerned this wouldn’t work as I thought the teeth of the zip would just keep getting caught on the fur but to my utter surprise it doesn’t!
Its totally over the top but I can’t wait to show you all!